Machine for cutting fish



April 24, 1928. 1,667,437 A. R. ROGERS MACHINE FOR CUTTING FISH FiledSept. 29, 1926 3 Sheets-sheet 1 ARJQO 82'6- vwemtoz 's I I I April 24,1928.

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April 24, 1928. 1,667,437

A. R. ROGERS MACHINE FOR CUTTING FISH Filed Sept. 29. 1926 3Sheets-Sheet 3 atfouwgo Patented Apr. .24, 1928.

v UNITED sTATEs PATENT OFFICE.

ARTHUR R. ROGERS, or ionnsron'r, MAINE.

MACHINE FOR CUTTING FISH.

Application filed September29, 1926. Serial No. 138,423.

This invention relates to a machine for cutting ofi' the heads and tailsof fish, such as sardines, and it is designed; primarily as animprovement upon the structure dis closed in the patent to Cleveland,-No;

1,129,168. 7 It has been found inpractice excellent results when usedfor 'cutting otf the heads and tails of-large fish but it has,

. prove upon the means for severingthe fish 1 departing from thespiritof the invention. 1

and to provide a means whereby the fish will rapidly move against thestops or gages that have been provided therefor, thus expediting thecutting operation and increasing the 'capacity of the machine.

With the foregoing and proceeds, the invention resides in thecombination and arrangement, of parts and inthe details of constructionhereinafter described and claimed, it being understood that changes inthe precise embodiment ofthe invention herein disclosed may be. madewithin the scope of what is claimed, without In theaccompanyingxdrawings the pre ferred form of the invention has beenshown.

In said drawings:

Figure 1 is a-plan view of the. machine.

Figure 2 is a section on. line 2-2 Figure 1.

Figure 3 is a section. online 33 Figure 2.

Figure 4 is a perspective View of one of the removable partitions.

Referring to the figures by characters of reference 1 designates aportion of the frame of the structure in which is journaled a rotarycarrier 2 in the form of a druniprovided in its periphery, withlongitudinal channels 3. These channels, as shown particularly inFigures 1 and 3 are slightly-inclined from near their centers towardtheir ends so that when a fish is placed in the uppermost channel it.will tend to gravitate toward either end. Formed within the carrier neareach end is an annular slot 4, these slots being adapted to receive thecircular cutters 5 which are mounted on ashaft that a ma clinic of thetype mentioned hasoproduced other objects in, view which will appear asthedescrip-tion ceiving spaces indicated at .20, 21 and 22 re- 6.opposite sides of the center of the drum are formed additionalannularslots 7-1tor the reception of. intermediate circular v cutters 8.For the purpose of holding the sections of the carrier together wherethe slots 4 and. 7 are located ,,longitudinal reinforc ng. flanges 9 areprovide'dwithin the drum, the flanges being off-set and, recessed at 1Owhere they bridge theslots, Aroftatablefeed wheel indicated at 11, is anranged adjacent the periphery of the carrier drum and has outwardlyprojecting teeth 12 designed to work within a slot 13 formed ina plate14 extending over the feed wheel.

This feed wheelie carried byia shaft 15 wlnch, when rotated, willoperate vthe'wheel so as. to direct the fish against the carrier wherethey will become seated Within the channel.

.The' feed wheel is arranged adjacent the.

bottoinof a box 16 having side brackets 17.

To theseside brackets are detachably connected gears 18 extending. frompartition platesl9i so. shaped as to extend close to the plate 14 andinto the intermediate slots 7. Thus when the partitions: are "place. thecarrier surface is divided into an interme-' diate. fishreceiving spaceand end fish respectively;

.A gage 1s rier,leach gage including ad1skx23 having laterally extendingfingers 24*carrying stops 25 which are seated within the respectivefchannelss. These disks aremounted on the shaft 26 supporting thecarrier2.

t In, the present construction theaxis, oi no tation of :the cuttersfiis above the, level of the axis of rotation of the carrier, it havingbeen found in practice that this locationis preferable to thearrangement of the cutter below the carrier. With the presentarrangement the cutters can shear. .down

through the'fish and into the slots so asto completely sever the fish,the operation being more efficient than where the fish are sup. portedby a shield extending under the car rier asin the Cleveland patenthereinbefore,

, T .3 locatcdxat each end. ofthe car'- mentioned. In the presentinstance an arcu-v ate shield 27 is utilized but this, is providedsolely. for the purpose of insuring proper disposal of the parts of thefish-after the cutting operation. a v p A nozzle 28 is supported abovethe center of the'carrier for the purpose of directing as theyare'brought into position under the nozzle 28, they will be caused toslide toward the left or toward the right of the carrier, according tothe direction in which the head is pointing. its the channel in whichthe fish are located is inclined toward the end,

the movementof the fish will be expedited. WVhile the fish are stillresting upon the bottom of the channel and firmly supported thereby,they, will come against the cutters inthe path thereof and these cuttersWill l of the cutters.

remove the heads and tails, the fish being can be removed.

By providing a means whereby small fish are centered on the carrier thefi h will be properly distributed toward both ends thereof because thereis no danger of all the fish being mounted closer to one end than to theother during the feeding operation.

VVhatis claimed is a 1. A machine for cutting fish including a rotarydrum tapered toward its ends from its center and having longitudinalchannels in its periphery, said channels being inclined fromintermediate points toward the ends of the drum, means for centeringfish upon the central portion of the drum and within the respectivechannels, cutters working transversely of the channels While the drum isin. motion, and means for Washing fish from the center of the drum headfirst toward the ends of the channels into the path 2. Ainaehine forcutting fish including a rotatable drum having longitudinal channels inits periphery, there being annular slots in the drum intersecting thechannels, rotary cutters projecting into the slots and mounted forrotation about an axis above the level of the axis of rotation of thedrum, said cutters projecting into the slots and adapted to sever fishcarried by the downwardly moving portion of the drum, means for feedingthe fish into the drum, and means for directing the fish laterallywithin the channels toward the ends of the drum.

3. A machine for cutting fish including a rotary drum havinglongitudinal channels in the periphery thereof, said channels beinginclined from intermediate points toward the ends thereof, there beingannular slots with in the drum intersecting the channels, rotary cuttersprojecting into the respective slots, means for feeding fish onto thedrum, removable partitions i-nsertible into certain of the slots forholding fish centered upon the carrier while 'being fed thereto, meansfor shifting the centered fish longitudinally within the channels towardthe respective ends of the drum, a stop in the outer end portionof'ea'ch channel and means connecting the stops at the respective endsof the channels, said means being, shiftable to Slll'lllh taneouslyadjust all of the stops carried thereby.

4. In a machine for cutting fish, a drum mounted for rotation andtapered from its center toward its ends to provide a central annularridge, fish receiving channels in the periphery of the drum extendingfrom end to end thereof, means for centering fish on the ridge andwithin the respective channels with heads pointing toward either end ofthe drum, means for directing a jet of water on to the fish to wash themalong the channels in the directions in which their heads are pointed,and adjustable stops in the end portions of the channels for limitingthe move ment of thefishw'ithin the channel.

5. A fish cutting machine including a rotatable drum tapered toward itsends from its center to provide a central annular ridge,

channels extending; from end to end of the periphery ofthe drum, meansfor centering fish on the rid e andin the res cctivcchantion, therebeing annular slots in the drum intersecting the channels, rotatablecutters "projecting into the slots, stops within the channels adjacentthe respective ends of the drum, and means for supporting the Stopsture.

ARTHUR R. ROGERS.

